Dive Brief:
- In April, New York state partially lifted a Medicaid ban on transgender surgeries.
- There are currently no surgeons in New York City who specialize in this type of surgery, according to NBC.
- Mount Sinai Beth Israel hospital is currently seeking surgeons to provide transitional surgeries.
Dive Insight:
"The day that announcement was made, when they lifted the Medicaid ban, I got a million calls from people like, 'I'm ready for the surgery,'" Dr. Barbara Warren, director for LGBT Health Services at Mount Sinai Beth Israel told NBC New York. "I had to break the news to them that we don't have a surgeon yet."
Online nine states, including New York, currently provide transitional healthcare coverage for people with private insurance. In seven states, Medicaid covers hormone therapy and certain transitional surgeries. Besides New York, Massachusetts, Oregon, California, Vermont, Washington DC and Minnesota provide Medicaid coverage for transitional healthcare.